Toyko, July 10, (dpa/GNA) – International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach has delivered a message of support to athletes taking part in the Tokyo Games after it was confirmed on Thursday no spectators will be allowed at venues in the Japanese capital due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“We all regret this decision for not having spectators – for the spectators, but even more so for the athletes, who will not be able to enjoy life in the Olympic atmosphere,” Bach said in a video published late Friday.
He emphasized that safety was the number one priority for these Games, but assured athletes will still have an Olympic experience to remember.
“For the athletes, I think their feeling will be very different, because they will know that billions of people from around the globe are with them in their hearts, that they are supporting them, that they are feeling with them,” Bach said.
“So, the athletes should also appreciate this feeling, and should feel encouraged by this different and new form of support in unprecedented times.”
Japan had long banned foreign fans but hoped to allow venues to be filled up to 50 percent of capacity with up to 10,000 domestic spectators.
However, after a coronavirus state of emergency covering the period of the Games was declared in Tokyo, local organizers decided to hold the competitions without fans.
The football matches on Japan’s northernmost main island Hokkaido will also be held without spectators. Previously, officials had asked fans not to watch the marathon and walking competitions at the Games from the roadside.
The organizers justified the decision with the difficulty of preventing fans from commuting between Hokkaido and Tokyo.
Baseball and softball competitions in Fukushima will take place behind closed doors as organizers revoked a previous decision to allow spectators at the Azuma Baseball Stadium.
As a precautionary measure, spectators are also not allowed at the Musashinonomori Park, the starting point for the cycling road events. The prefectures of Miyagi, Fukushima and Shizuoka, on the other hand, wanted to allow spectators at competitions.
The postponed Tokyo Games are set to start on July 23.
Bach said a record 9,000 hours of action will be broadcast around the world, and athletes and fans will “enjoy a unique digital experience.”
GNA